Mother: I asked Takako to buy milk on her way home, but I wonder if she forgot.

Today, we’ll look at the Xように言(い)う pattern and some related expressions. Xように言う means to “tell someone to do X,” and it’s used when a person reports what they told someone to do, like how the mother told Takako to get milk. X represents a verb in its dictionary or nai-form that conveys intention — generally requests, orders or advice.

Other verbs expressing communication can be used in place of 言う. They include 頼(たの)む (to ask), 伝(つた)える (to tell) and 命(めい)じる (to order). To ask someone something politely, X should be used in polite form, as in:

小野(おの)さんが戻(もど)られましたら、御(ご)連絡(れんらく)くださいますようお伝えいただけますか。 (Could you tell Ms. Ono to contact us when she gets back to the office?)

When the speaker reports what was said to them, Y(person)にXように言われる is usually the pattern used:

課長(かちょう)に報告書(ほうこくしょ)を出(だ)すように言われた。 (The section chief told me to assign the report.)

The meaning of Xように言う is similar when X is used in its imperative or prohibitive forms along with と言っている/言われている/書(か)いてある and so on. However, this pattern is more direct and conveys a stronger impression:

この機械(きかい)に触(さわ)るなと言われました。 (I was told not to touch this machine.)

Situation 2: Ms. Tamachi complains to her colleague Ms. Gray about a new employee.